


Smoke and Smog

by Iwouldwrite1000fics



Category: The Lorax (2012)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Redemption, Romantic Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-10
Updated: 2019-06-10
Packaged: 2020-04-24 06:11:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 7,694
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19167415
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Iwouldwrite1000fics/pseuds/Iwouldwrite1000fics
Summary: Once-ler sets out to fix what he's broken, even if it kills him.





	1. Chapter 1

Once-ler was sprawled across his bed, still in his tailored green suit and gloves, staring up at the ceiling. It was silent. There were no swooping sounds of birds in the sky, no hums from the humming fish, and no whining from the Lorax. He couldn’t even hear the chugging and slugging of his factory that was shut down for the night. Soon it would be shut down forever if he didn’t do something. 

Once-ler got up and stared out his window, stared at the stump where the last truffula tree had stood. Then he looked down at the small stone formation the Lorax had left on his lawn. A single word cut into the biggest stone, unless. 

“What on Earth does that mean?! Unless. Unless what! I mean now that I finally know you just give up leave that!” he shouted to the sky.

Once-ler turned away from the window and stormed back to his bed. He collapsed onto it and exhausting finally taking over he fell asleep…

He was sitting on the porch of the house as the old pick up rattled up the drive-way. 

“Dad!”

Once-ler ran up to the truck as a man with black hair and bright blue eyes stepped out.

“Hey, champ, did you miss me?” 

“Yeah! Can we play now?”

“Let me clean up first.”

“Okay.”

They went inside and Once-ler gathered up the music sheets and made sure the guitar was in tune as his dad changed in clean clothes.

“We better have the lesson inside today, the wind’s picking up,” his dad said, checking to make sure the living room window was tightly shut.

Once-ler didn’t do a very good job with his lesson though, now more interested in what was going on outside. He picked half-heartedly at the guitar strings before getting up and walking across the living room. He looked out the window at the black dust that swirled in the air and coated everything it touched.

“Dad, what is that stuff?”

“It’s coal dust from the mine where I work.”

“Is it always so messy?”

“Yes, it happens as we take the coal out of the ground.”

“Why do you do that?”

“Because the people in town need the coal.”

“Why?”

“To heat their homes and run their businesses, and they live far away from here where the dust doesn’t reach them, so they don’t see how bad it is.”

“But don’t they care about us? About them?” he asked, pointing to birds huddled for safety in the loft of the barn.

His dad sighed and put his hand on the Once-ler’s shoulder. 

“Unless people like you care a whole awful lot about those things, son, nothing’s going to get better than this, it’s not.”

The Once-ler snapped awake, after taking a moment to remember where he was, he pushed himself off his bed in a flurry of determination. The single word carved on that stone outside now made perfect sense. 

You had to care to make changes. That’s why he wanted to change the world for the better. Oh, sure the fame and recognition had been there too, but they hadn’t been the first and foremost reason for doing all that. He had just let greed make him forget all that. Forget that he cared about the money because he wanted to provide a good life for his family. Forget that he had created that Thneed because he wanted to help people. But he cared! He really truly did! He cared enough to fix this! 

His mother may have been neglectful and unsupportive, but she had taught him one thing: you had to clean up your own messes. Or your brothers if they blamed what they broke on you, but that was beside the point. The point was that he had caused all this destructing and despair and he had to clean it up, somehow. 

***

The first thing he did was start gathering up all the Truffula seeds he could find. He left a memo for all the workers to look for them too as the last of the tuffs came on the assembly line. Any that were found were to be put in his office where his secretary would bring them to him. 

As the supply got smaller he kept the workers on rotating shifts, trying to give everybody at least some hours, most of which he was paying for out of his own pocket since production was so low now. But he had a hundred thousand workers to think about, he couldn’t let them suffer because he couldn’t figure out what the words sustainable business model meant. He had the R&D department working night and day on that too. Finding ways to clean up their smog emissions, to get the sludge out of the river and make it into road pavement, or roofing glue, or ceiling wax! He didn’t care. Just something that would help clean up the valley and keep the business afloat if he could.

Meanwhile he had shut himself up in his house with his collection of seeds. With the sun blocked and the soil packed down and polluted by his machines the Once-ler was giving himself a crash course in hydroponics. Desperately trying to get the seeds to grow, trying to get the nutrient balance just right, and making sure the water stayed clean. 

As he finished looking over a row of plants he turned away from his work abruptly, coughing hard into his hands.

As the fit finished and he pulled back his hands he gasped at the black tar like substance that now covered them. He had seen it before, years ago. Once-ler closed his eyes as his mind was thrown back to those days he had tried so hard to forget.

Suddenly he wasn’t in a make-shift laboratory in his basement, suddenly he was running down the road home from school and wondering why dad didn’t race him home anymore. He was in front of the TV, his breakfast cereal getting soggy on the table, as he wrapped his favourite blanket around his dad as he lay on the couch, because he was always complaining that he was cold. 

He was washing towel after towel that was streaked black, and later red, thinking that there should be something else for his dad to use. Something that was thicker and not so rough. He remembered sitting on the floor of his dad’s room at the hospital strumming the guitar his dad said was his now, wanting to show dad how much he had learned; hoping that would make him feel better. He remembered sitting by the phone with Brett and Chet waiting for the phone call from his mother that would tell them they didn’t have to wait anymore. That everything his dad was, was reduced to nothing more than a carved black headstone that Once-ler visited every Father’s day.

He should have known it would happen to him. They already had so much in common, why not this too? 

Slowly he wiped away his tears, pushing the memories back, and nodded his head in defiance. Well this just meant he had to work even harder, faster, than before.

Washing his hands quickly the Once-ler turned back to his work. With the bright lights of the lab beating down on him he checked over the saplings, pulling his coat and thneed tighter around him as he shivered.

He would fix what he’d broken or die trying.


	2. Chapter 2

It was nearly noon and the sun had actually managed to peak through the thick clouds of smog that still surrounded the valley. Once-ler was taking advantage of the good weather and getting his next batch of samplings outside. He worked as quickly as he could, breaking up the dirt and planting trees, making sure the trees would be far enough apart to allow all of them the chance to grow tall. 

After they were all in the ground he worked at keeping the grackle grass away from his make shift garden. As he yanked up the weeds he heard soft foot falls behind him. Thinking it was his secretary he waited for the sound of the glass jar clinking on his steps with the promise of more seeds. But there was no clinking of glass, just more footfalls and then something, someone, was nudging his leg. 

“Yes? Can I help you?” he asked turning around and stopped short. It wasn’t a person standing there, it was a bar-ba-loot. The biggest one Once-ler had ever seen, but after a moment he smiled as he recognized the large brown eyes, the light patch of fur on his chest, and the tuft of hair that sat on the top of his head. 

“Not a little Pipsqueak anymore are you?” he asked, reaching out and stroking the bar-ba-loot’s head softly. “But you shouldn’t be here you know. These little things don’t have any fruits for you to eat. I hope they will though.” He hadn’t had time to test all the variables. This strain of Truffula would fare better in the nutrient poor soil, and provide an anchor for rich top soil that he could use to plant the original trees later. But he didn’t know if this new type of Truffula would over run their parents when the time came to plant the old seeds. He didn’t know if this strain would give any fruit, if the tuffs would be the right thickness to support a Swami swan’s nest.

His thoughts were cut off as his chest constricted. He covered his face with the thneed that he always kept around his neck and turned away from Pipsqueak as he coughed, but he could feel a soft paw rubbing his back. When it was over Once-ler went inside to get a drink of water. 

He couldn’t deny it anymore he realized as he stood by the sink. The attacks were getting longer and more frequent. Time was running out. Still, he thought morbidly, he was right all those years ago. The thneed was much better than towels at absorbing the blood. 

He went back outside to the garden to see that Pipsqueak was gone. Sighing Once-ler crouched down and went back to digging.

*** 

“What’s up with you, Pipsqueak? Thinking that just because you’re the biggest one now you can boss everyone around!”

Pipsqueak just grunted in annoyance and pushed the Lorax onward.

“All right, all right, keep your suit on I’m coming.” 

Grabbing the seat of his pants the Lorax lifted himself up into the sky, following the bar-ba-loot as he raced back across the landscape to the barren wasteland they had left behind.

***

What was there to see? The Lorax thought as he touched down. That the factory was still running? That the land was still bare save for tree stumps and a river that ran black? Okay the river was a dingy grey now, but that didn’t matter the humming-fish still couldn’t live in it. 

Pipsqueak was still insistently pulling him along though. So the Lorax went with him silently and looked up at the house that was still there, tall and imposing. Where the man the Lorax had once considered a friend lived. 

As he got closer to it the Lorax could see Truffulla saplings growing around the back door. Hmm maybe he was learning something after all. No the Lorax realized as he went over to the trees these weren’t like the ones that had died. These ones had green, blue, and white tuffs on them. The bark was darker and the trunks thicker. It looked like the Once-ler was creating new colours for a whole new line of thneeds, well that was just great.

Pipsqueak was right he still had some speaking for the trees to do. Going around to the front of the house and reaching up as high as he could he pounded on the door.

“Once-ler, open up!”

There was no answer so Pipsqueak got underneath the Lorax and pushed up so he could reach the handle. They let themselves in and began looking for the house’s owner.

It wasn’t very cared for the Lorax thought as he walked along the dirt covered floors. It looked like he was busy on some new project. There were papers stacked up on the kitchen table. Cups, bowls, and all manner of dishes had been stacked up in the sink and left. What looked like two or three of thneeds were piled up by a door off of the kitchen, and they had dark red stains on them. 

Pipsqueak ran up to him, his eyes frantic, and started pushing him upstairs towards the bedroom.

“Found him did you?” the Lorax asked, as he pushed the bedroom door open and prepared to give his former a friend a piece of his mind.

The Lorax gasped at what he found in the room. The Once-ler was asleep on the bed and he looked absolutely ghastly. He had been thin to begin with, but now his cheeks were sunken in. His hair plastered to his face that was flushed with fever. The rest of his body was as white as his sheets. What was truly terrifying though was the deep wheezing sound he made as he inhaled. As if every breath was a fight to the death.

“Kid!” The Lorax cried out, and scrambled up onto the bed. “Come on, Once-ler, don’t do this to me! Wake up! Wake up!”

The Lorax shook his shoulders and slowly Once-ler’s eyes fluttered open. They were fever bright and they focused on the Lorax.

“Right, back to work. The forest won’t grow on its own,” Once-ler said, struggling to sit up 

“No, no, you need to stay right where you are!”

Once-ler shook his head. 

“Too little time left and I have-have to fix it…it’s my fault.”

He coughed and red droplets fell on the thneed around his neck. As he looked at it the Lorax realized what those stains on the other thneeds were and shuddered, how long had this been going on?

Despite protests from the Lorax Once-ler pushed himself off the bed. But he swayed on his feet, then stumbled forward and collapsed to the floor.


	3. Chapter 3

Once-ler opened his eyes to see nothing but white. White ceilings, white walls, and there was a strange beeping sound filling his ears. Was he in heaven? The answer seemed to be yes as an angel with curly brown hair, pulled up into an untidy bun, and a large pair of blue rimmed glasses that sat on her nose filled his vision.  
Then there was a sharp pain in his chest and the familiar smell of blood filled his nose as he coughed and he knew he was still in reality.

The angel stayed with him though, her hands strong and steady as she held him through the attack.

“Try to relax. I’ve got you. It’ll all be okay.”

His body went limp as the coughing finished. She gently cleaned up the blood and adjusted the IV drips, and Once-ler slipped back into blissful unconsciousness.

“Will he really be all right?”

The nurse turned to look at the small orange creature made of fuzz and fur that the paramedics had found at the scene; the one who had called the hospital yesterday in a complete panic. Shouting into the phone that his friend was dying; the one who had paced around the waiting room all night and all day waiting for any news. 

“I’ll be honest, sir, it’s going to be touch and go for a while. He’s very weak and the infection isn’t under control yet, but his spirit is strong, I can tell. Still…if anything should happen, do you know if there is any family to call?”

The Lorax thought about the people who had packed up and left the Once-ler when the gravy train had stopped, after throwing everything he had done for them back in his face for good measure.

“No.”

The nurse nodded and left the room to finish her rounds. As she left the Lorax approached the bed. Getting himself settled on it he took one of the Once-ler’s hands. He still looked pretty bad. Though his hair was combed back now and the mask covering his mouth and nose made the wheezing quieter. He was still pale, still fragile; far removed from the smug ruthless businessman who cared for nothing but his company and his own greed. This man was simply broken.

“You watch over him, Pipsqueak,” the Lorax said, to the bar-ba-loot curled up on the end of the bed. 

Pipsqueak nodded and curled himself closer to the Once-ler. 

“You hang on, Beanpole, okay? And I’ll make sure all that hard work doesn’t go to waste.”

He wasn’t sure, but he thought he felt Once-ler squeeze his hand back. The Lorax smiled.

“Okay.”

***

Later, when the fever had broken, and he wasn’t being stuffed full of ten different medications he couldn’t begin to pronounce Once-ler began to notice his surroundings properly. Like that fact that Pipsqueak was sitting on the end of his bed.

“Hey, you came back.”

The bar-ba-loot just rolled his eyes and scooted closer to him, as if to say ‘you didn’t think I would do anything else did you?’

“I’ve missed you, you know,” he said, rubbing Pipsqueak’s belly.

“And my boss said having him here would be bad for you.”

Once-ler turned his head to see a familiar angel-nurse sorry she was a nurse. As she began checking the machines and shifting things around Once-ler noticed for the first time that the thneed he was using as a pillow wasn’t his.

“It’s yellow.”

“I’m sorry?” 

“This thneed it’s yellow, mine was pink.”

“Oh we had to remove all that when they brought you in, but I try to make sure each patient has a thneed. I like them and I think the provide warmth and comfort when people stay here.”

“Well that’s great,” he said, glad that his invention was being used to help people just like it should.

The nurse finished her work and left him to rest. He didn’t get much though as a few minutes later a woman with long red hair was knocking on the door awkwardly, her arms heavy with several bags.

“Miss Funce-ler?”

“I must say, Mr. Once-ler, you sure know how to make my job a royal pain in the ass. I came to your house to drop off more seeds and found the door open, no memos or notes from you; just books and boxes stacked everywhere, and fish bathing in your dishes.”

Once-ler felt his heart clench in hope.

“You-you didn’t send them away did you?”

Miss Funce-ler stared at him.

“No, but you know you really should have better communications with us, sir. I spent more than three hours yesterday trying to track you down, and if we’d known you were in the hospital we would have sent all this earlier.”

What that she began emptying out the bags she had brought with her, piling up cards and chocolates and bags of marshmallows onto the only chair in the room.  
Once-ler eyes went wide. “What’s all this for?”

“We wanted to wish you a speedy recovery and to thank you for all your hard work. We know you’ve been doing your best to keep the factory going without the trees and trying to keep the staff on…well most of them anyway.”

The Once-ler’s brow furrowed in thought. 

“Miss Funce-ler, you have a sister Mrs…O’Schmunsler isn’t it?”

“Yes, why?”

“I know I had to let her husband go when we closed the east division. Since I’m not going to back for a while you can keep her on as your assistant.”

The young woman’s face absolutely lit up in joy, and her eyes filled up with tears.

“Oh thank you, sir!”

Miss Funce-ler kissed him on the cheek and ran out the door, nearly running over the nurse standing there with a food tray. 

Once-ler looked at her, his face beet red as he shrugged.

“My secretary.”

“A very hands on business you run I see,” she said, and she put the tray down in front of him. 

“What’s this?” he asked taking off the lid.

“It’s chicken soup. You get to move up to semi-solid foods today, and I got you extra crackers to celebrate the occasion.”

“Well thank you very much-uh…umm. I’m so terribly sorry you’ve been caring for me all this time and I haven’t even asked you your name.”

She smiled and pushed her glasses higher up on her nose. “It’s Norma.”

“Thank you, Norma.”

He held out his hand and Norma shook it firmly. She held on to it a bit longer than she meant to, and when she realized what she was doing she dropped his hand and pointed one finger at him. 

“You can thank me by eating all of that, sir.”

Once-ler smiled as she left and began crumbling the crackers into his soup. Pipsqueak left the bed to help himself to the bags of marshmallows while Once-ler made sure there wasn’t a speck of soup left in the bowl when Norma came to pick it up.


	4. Chapter 4

“Are you sure about this?” Once-ler asked Norma, as he piled the small assortment of odds and ends he had accumulated during his hospital stay into the backseat of her car.

“Absolutely!” Norma confirmed enthusiastically, as she buckled Pipsqueak in the seat beside his things and slipped into the driver’s seat. “Since you spent the last two days trying to sneak out of your room, not to mention what you were like when you first came in, I know you can’t be trusted on your own. So it’s far better to watch you than to have you come back a week from now in even worse shape.”

“But I can’t pay you-I mean not properly I…”

“Since you’ve been complaining about over-cooked vegetables and under cooked meat I know you can cook.”

“Well yes, but-“ 

“Then it’s settled. I do my job in exchange for a free room, and all the pancakes I can eat. Besides this’ll give me an excuse to get away from my mother and her ‘advice’ for a while, and that’s worth more than all the money on Earth.”

“Okay then, but don’t you think you mother might have a point with her advice?”

Norma laughed loudly, her eyes bright and happy.

“Oh, please! She can’t even run her own life I’m not letting her run mine!” 

“Oh.” He really should have done that with his own mother come to think of it.

They stopped at the market and bought several bags worth of food. Once-ler offered Norma one the bag of marshmallows they had bought, but she shook her head.

“I only like those when I put them in baking.”

Once-ler shrugged. “More for us then,” he said, handing the bag to Pipsqueak, who began devouring them with glee as the car turned out to the road that led outside of town where he lived.

“Norma, I should warn that my place won’t be very tidy. I was busy when I got sick.”

Norma just rolled her eyes she parked the car and they began unloading it

“I lived with three total slobs for roommates in college. How bad could it possibly be?” 

Norma regretted her words as they opened the front door. The house was nothing short of a disaster zone. The floor was covered in dirt and muddy paw-prints. There were at least a dozen Swani swans and bar-ba-loots sleeping all over everything and random stacks of books and boxes around counters and furniture. 

“I can see we have a lot of work to do.”

***

Oh god he looked horrible! 

Norma was downstairs dealing with the mess and had left him take care of himself. He had his first real shower in what felt like a year and now he was currently staring at his reflection in the mirror. Norma had let him go out in public like this!? His face unshaven and his hair uneven, and getting long enough to brush his shoulders. 

Disgusted with his appearance he spent nearly the next hour neatly trimming the hair back to a respectable length and then he broke out the shaving cream. Slowly he shaved the mass of black off his face, until he stopped looking like his old neighbour Mr. Grinch.

He decided to keep the moustache though, it looked rather nice.

Getting dressed he went downstairs, where Norma was glaring at him while sweeping the floor, and out the back door. 

“Take it easy on yourself out there!”

“I will, I promise!” he called back.

He went out to his hastily made garden expecting to find nothing but wilting saplings if there was anything still living at all. Instead he found tall straight trees that were nearly as tall as he was already. It looked like the little guys had survived just fine while he was away. Even the grickle grass hadn’t moved that far in. Still the work was far from over. Going to the side of the house he filled the watering can and got back to it. 

As he watered the trees he noticed several smaller ones, newer ones, growing among the bigger trees and they had the proper colours of the old Truffula trees. Was it possible that he had…? Once-ler shook his head. Of course it wasn’t, these were from seeds that were already in the ground and just waiting to sprout it couldn’t possibly be anything else. Once-ler didn’t dare let himself hope for the miracle of the Lorax’s return just yet. Until he turned around to go and put the watering can away, and saw him standing, just watching him, on the rock formation he had left.

“Who-but, but…you?”

The Lorax smiled “Don’t tell me I’m that easy to forget. I am the Lorax, guardian of the forest. I speak for the-”

He didn’t get to finish as the Once-ler tackled him to the ground and hugged him hard.

“Yeah, you remember,” he said, hugging him back. 

“I thought I’d dreamed all that.”

“I kind of wish you had. Don’t you ever scare me like that again, Kid.”

Once-ler nodded, and kept a tight grip on the Lorax, as if he would float away again if he didn’t.

“You saved my life again.”

“Yeah, well it wasn’t a big deal. Other people did the saving, I just told them you needed help.”

“It is a big deal,” he whispered, as he remembered that night by the river so long ago. As he was reminded of the promise he’d made and broken. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

The Lorax shifted himself and looked his friend in the eye.

“You done good, Beanpole, you done good.”

Once-ler set his friend down on the ground and his eyes drifted behind his tiny garden, looking out at the barren valley beyond.

“But there’s still so much to do.”

The Lorax nodded.

“But you don’t have to do it alone anymore, Beanpole.”

“Thank you.”

Standing there the Lorax took his first good look at his friend. He could stand to put on weight still, but his skin was pink again and he could breathe easily. Then he looked at his face and laughed.

“By the way, nice moustache.”

“Thanks, I think.”

Another voice interrupted their banter.

“By take it easy I didn’t mean sit in the dirt.”

They looked over to where Norma was standing on the front steps tapping her foot.

“Woah, Beanpole, look what you brought home!”

Once-ler sighed, so much for the idea of rest and a quiet recovery.

“Moustache, this is Norma. Norma, this is my, annoying, friend the Lorax.”

“Nice to meet you again,” Norma said.

“Pleasure’s all mine.”

Norma smiled.

“I’ll set another place at the table, if I can find any more dishes the fish aren’t using that is.”

She went back inside and Once-ler turned to the Lorax with a quizzical expression.

“You met her before?”

“Yeah, when you went to the hospital. She cleans up nice.”

“And what is that supposed to mean?”

“Just that you’ve got yourself a nice girl and she’s nice looking too, Beanpole.”

“Okay for your information she’s a woman, and I don’t have anything. She’s just my nurse. She wanted to stay with me to make sure I take care of myself and that’s all.” 

“Really?”

“Really.”

The Lorax hummed knowingly.

“You let all your nurses use your aprons?”

Once-ler rolled his eyes.

“Keep this up, Moustache, and you’re going to talk yourself right out of any pancakes for a week.”

The Lorax chuckled and they went inside. 

“Did you have any trouble with the other trees?” Once-ler asked the Lorax.

“No, I was fine.”

“Other trees?” Norma asked.

The Lorax made his way over to the door by the kitchen. Onc-ler motioned for Norma to follow and they took her down to the basement with them.

Once-ler stared wide at the room. Not only were the saplings he had been nurturing still there, but there were at least three whole new rows of them too, with proper tuff colours and white bark.

“Wow! You really did do just fine.”

The Lorax shrugged. “If I can’t grow trees, Beanpole, then I deserve to have my title revoked.”

Norma stared at it all in awe.

“You did all this?!”

Once-ler ran one hand through his hair awkwardly to avoid looking at her. “Well I set it up so it could run on its own for a while, and obviously he kept it going, but…yeah I did.”

“This is so wonderful I could just…”

Instead of saying it she just did it, she kissed him. Once-ler went stiff in shock before he happily returned the kiss.

Norma broke it first. She stepped back, her face bright red, and pushed her hair behind one ear. 

“Yes, well these trees won’t plant themselves. Let’s get to work shall we?”

Still blushing like mad she moved closer to the rows of trees, and the Lorax gave Once-ler a side eyed glance.

“Just a nurse huh?” he asked.

Once-ler glared at him.

“We were excited,” he said defensively, “it means nothing.”


	5. Chapter 5

It was a clear, quiet, night and Once-ler walked along the edge of the forest. Yes there was still a forest; still room for everyone to live happily. Sure there were a few more stumps now, but there were still plenty of trees to go around. Why was the Lorax always harping on him? Always looking disappointed in him for finally being successful?

All those thought were driven from his mind though as he turned around the edge of a hillside and saw a familiar figure standing there in the moonlight.

“Dad?”

The man looked over at him, his smile bright and wide.

“Look at you, Once-ler, you’re a real champ now.”

He came over to his youngest son. Once-ler gawked at him, looking at the grey slacks, the white shirt, and the flat grey hat that had been his trademark outfit. It was all so far removed from the tailored black pants, silk green jacket, and large top hat that Once-ler wore. 

“I’m so proud of you, Champ, making a good honest living like this.”

Once-ler felt his insides squirm with guilt.

“Right, honest.”

“You’re breaking your promise! This is bad!”

In an instant his dad was gone and all the trees were gone too. The clear sky was marred by thick clouds of black smoke, the grass wiped away under rumbling wheels of the tree choppers.

A familiar RV was in front of him and the window rolled down. 

“Oncie, you have let me down. Brett, you are now my favourite child.”

The RV drove off and Once-ler stood alone in the world as the animals started surrounding him. 

“Look, I-I don’t want any trouble.”

He backed away from the crowd of animals. Tripping over the tails of his coat he fell backwards into the river. The black sludge the now made up the once clear fresh water covered his arms and legs and dragged him under.

“No, no! I’m sorry!”

His eyes flew open and Once-ler found himself in his bathtub, half filled with cold water, stripped down to nothing but his heart print boxer shorts. Norma was running a damp cloth over his face, and the animals had crowded into the tiny space and were watching anxiously.

“W-What happened?”

“It’s all right it’s just a minor relapse. These things happen sometimes, that’s why I’m here. Everything’s going to be fine.”

When she was satisfied with his condition Norma dried him off and got him back into bed. Meanwhile the Lorax piled up blankets and pillows around him.

“Moustache, you don’t have to do all-“

The Lorax glared at him and he promptly shut up.

“I thought I told you not to scare me like this.”

“Sorry.”

Once-ler sighed and let his body go limp against the pillows, remembering his dream, nightmare really. He hadn’t thought of his dad in so long, but now…his dad had been a good honest man why had he died from this and his rotten excuse for a son hadn’t? 

“Maybe it’s just better like this.”

The Lorax looked ready to punch him and Norma gasped. “Oncie, don’t say that!”

“Well it’s true! Why should I get anything less after doing that?!” he shouted, gesturing out the window to the empty hills.

“It wasn’t just you, you know.”

“Of course it was! I broke my promise and let them do it!”

Norma folded her arms across her chest in defiance.

“And are we all just a bunch of lemmings that do everything because you say so?”

Once-ler blinked at her. “Huh?”

Slowly she came over and sat down next to him on the bed, taking his hand in hers.

“Look, Once-ler, yes you let your company do all that, but if your employees cared enough about the trees they would have gone on strike until you changed your policies. What about all of us who bought thneeds and demanded that you make more? Sure they were some people who protested, but most of us thought they were crazy. That the damage couldn’t possibly be as bad as they said it was.” Norma sighed, looking out the window at where miles and miles of Truffula trees once stood. “It’s so easy to ignore a problem when you don’t have to look at it every day.” 

Once-ler kissed her cheek and whispered softly.

“Hey, it’s not all bad. You were using them to help people; unlike that guy who was using them to make the world’s biggest slingshot.”

Norma giggled. “Yeah, that was pretty stupid. But if I’m not all bad than you aren’t either, and you need to stop beating yourself up over this. It happened and you can’t change that now, but you are doing your best to make things right and no one can ask for anything more.”

“She’s right, Kid.”

“I guess.”

Norma snuggled closer to him running her fingers through his hair.

“You know what we should do.”

“What?” he asked.

“We should plant one of the saplings right in the middle of town. Right in the park where everyone can see it and be reminded about what we all almost lost, so we won’t let it happen again.”

Once-ler nodded and buried his head against her shoulder. It was awkward, because he was a good foot taller than she was, and yet it was also very sweet.

“That sounds like a great idea.”


	6. Chapter 6

The weeks rolled on. More trees made their way outside. While more animals made their way inside; and Norma never did really get around to going back to her apartment. She went back once and a while, to bring over her set of dishes after the Humming-fish had commandeered all of Once-ler’s, and an old quilt she had made for the bed she and Once-ler had started to share. 

When Once-ler went back to the factory she went with him as the new onsite nurse.

As she set up her office and introduced herself to the staff Once-ler went to his office. The room was swept up, the pictures were put back on the wall, the curtains pulled open, and the scale model of Thneedville went in the trash. Really ‘fantastic! Made of plastic!’? What kind of motto was that for a town? Instead he took the land he had purchased for the project and declared it a protected area of the forest. Just because he had vowed to change his ways that didn’t guarantee that in the future someone else wouldn’t make another stupid decision. At least this time there would be some protection for the trees, and for the animals that needed them.

Also they had put Norma’s plan into action. They had picked out a nice bright pink sapling and brought it into town. As people gathered around to watch them he had dug fervently in the dirt and then covered the sapling gently with the soil, making sure it would grow healthy and strong.

Norma had watched him work. He had looked so determined so focused, at the moment Norma didn’t think she had ever been more in love with him. She smiled and kissed his cheek.

He flushed bright red at her kiss and on the spur of the moment he pulled out a ring in his pocket. It wasn’t fancy, it wasn’t even a proper engagement ring. It was his father’s class ring that he had found in a small box that had been thrust into his arms by his mother when he was eight years old. 

As Norma stood up to go get the watering can they had brought he grabbed her wrist and moved his body so that he was down on one knee. 

“Norma, w-will you marry me?”

She cried and threw her arms around him, knocking both of them to the ground.

“Yes, oh yes.”

***

As Norma got off the phone with the caterer he looked over the paperwork in front of him. It was all filled out at last, he was really going to do this.

Norma’s hand gripped his shoulder and he covered her hand with his.

“Are you sure about this?” she asked.

He nodded. “Yeah, I need to do it for me. This is my second chance. I want to make it a clean fresh start.”

She slid into his lap and leaned her head against his chest.

“Can I still call you Oncie sometimes?”

“Of course, just not in front of Moustache anymore he has enough nicknames for me already.”

***

The big day had arrived and Once-ler stood in the gazebo in the park where he had first tried to sell his thneed. They had both agreed that it was the right place for their wedding. Norma had even revealed to him that she had watched him sing there one day when she came to buy some tomatoes. Not to throw them at him she insisted, but the vendor had been selling them cheaper than at the market. 

Blushing at those memories Once-ler straightened the sleeves of his tux and looked over to where their tree was growing. It was strong and healthy, swaying softly in the afternoon breeze. It was such a wonderful sight. The mayor of Greenville had even put a special plaque by it.

When the music started Once-ler looked down the aisle to see an even more beautiful as Norma walked towards him. She had chosen a simple white dress, not seeing the need for a long train she would just spend the day tripping over. She had kept her bright blue glasses on and her hair was curled up tight under her veil. 

They stood together in front of the crowd, many of who were ready to start throwing rice in tomato shaped bags when the ceremony finished. Overhead the songs of the Swami swans filled the air and several Bar-ba-loots and Humming-fish, with Pipsqueak leading them all, had taken up space in the front row on the grass. 

“Do you, Theodore, take Norma Wiggins to be your lawfully wedded wife? To have and to hold from this day forward, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?”

“I do.”


	7. Chapter 7

It shouldn’t have surprised him. Greenville didn’t leave in some giant plastic bubble with no contact with the world outside. People travelled outside of the town, and news travelled with them. News that Thneeds Incorporated had bounced back from what should have been total ruin. They carried news that the thneed now came in new colours; news that Greenville was expanding steadily, cautiously, a shining example of environmental sustainability for others to follow. 

It really shouldn’t have surprised him that his family would learn about his situation and come back.

But it did.

His eyes were wide like saucers as he approached the RV, it had a bit more rust now, and the bumper had fallen off, but it was theirs all the same.

“Mother?”

“Oh, Oncie, I knew you could do it!”

She ran up and hugged him. He just stood there, too shocked to return the embrace.

“What are you doing here?”

“Well of course we came back, Oncie, you need us. I means just look at that caterpillar you’ve grown on your face! Now is that the kind of image we want on all the promotional materials? You have to let us help you.”

He just stared at them for a while, before turning away slightly. Coughing lightly from the smoke of the cigars Brett and Chet had taken to smoking while they were here, and still did. It would be a lifelong reminder of what they had done to him…no, no what he had done to himself. What he had allowed himself to become because he wanted their approval. No matter how much he loved them, he couldn’t be with them.

“No.”

“What did you say?”

“I said no. I can’t do that to myself and let anyone else suffer because of my mistakes!”

“Oncie! We’re your family.”

Before Once-ler could answer her Norma came out of the house.

“Excuse me, why are you parked on my flower bed?”

Once-ler’s mother narrowed her eyes at the young woman.

“And just who are you, little miss?”

Norma glared at her.

“I’m Norma Wiggins, I live here and so I’ll ask you again, why is your vehicle parked on our property?”

Aunt Grizelda stepped up close to Norma.

“Well aren’t you a feisty one? Once-ler, at least you found a better guard than the giant furry peanut.”

“She’s my wife. Don’t talk to her like that!” 

Once-ler put his hands on her shoulders and held her close.

His mother gasped. “Wife? Oncie, why would you ever pick such a homely girl?”

“Because I love her! And she loves me, just as I am. I have what I need…without you.”

“You don’t mean that. You can’t! You talk about love! Well I’m talking about family loyalty and human opportunity, Once-ler!”

“Don’t call me that! My name is Theodore Wiggins and I speak for the trees!”

As he spoke those words the clouds suddenly swirled above him and the land grew dark. There was a giant clap of thunder, several flashes of lighting and then rain poured down on the valley in torrents.

His family rushed inside the RV for shelter. Once-ler and Norma stood there in awe, before they turned to the Lorax, who was watching the whole scene from behind a nearby Truffula tree.

The guardian of the forest just shrugged and gave them a small smile. “That’s how it works, Beanpole, you have to believe.” 

***

The rain had passed and a brilliant rainbow had appeared in its place. Once-ler was looking at it with sad eyes, sitting out on the steps staring out at the horizon, where the RV had disappeared for the second and last time.

“Ted, are you okay?” 

Once-ler didn’t even turn around to look at her.

“I know it was the right thing to do, she-they don’t really care for me-love me- the way I want them to, and I can’t change that. I can only control what I do; and I know I can’t let myself fall into that kind of temptation again…”

He sighed bring his knees up and resting his head on them. 

“But it’s just hard to know that me just being me will never be enough for her.”

Norma sat down next to him and leaned her head against her husband’s shoulder.

“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”

He smiled and wrapped an arm around her waist.

“When did you get to be so wise?”

Norma frowned. “Unfortunately you aren’t the only one who wishes their family could be like the families we read about and see on TV. I know I’m not what my dad wanted. He wanted a boy to carry on the family name and business. Mom wanted a girl she could dress up in lace and ribbon, not a woman with a mind and a life of her own. I knew it would be hard to leave them. That they would try to stop me, not because they love me, but because they want to control me…but I have to live my life for me not them.”

Once-ler tightened his arm around her waist and kissed her.

“We’re just a couple of misfits aren’t we?”

She laughed and cuddled closer to him.

“Then we fit right in.”

She nodded her head and Once-ler looked out to where the Lorax was leading the Humming-fish in choir practice.

“Besides,” Norma said, smiling brightly and pulling out a white stick that was bright blue on the end from her pocket and showing it to him. “There are others ways to have a family.”

The End


End file.
